Loving life with Lymphedema

I guess my first question is . . . when was the last time you wore shoes?  Since the COVID pandemic I can count one time I wore a "fancy shoe" it's been all sandals and sneakers for me.  I have been looking for some cute white sneakers, ones I can wear with jeans, stretch pants and even with a skirt or dress.  I usually shy away from colorful or white shoes to try and not draw attention to Bertha.  But I've found a new confidence this year, so with swimsuits and shorts I'm adding any type color of shoe to the list of items I'm going to wear with pride!   I always forget Lane Bryant's shoes come in wide sizes, I checked and found their Lace Up Sneaker .  I ordered the 11 wide, they are so comfortable and I'm able to wear my Sigvaris wraps with them.  I would say they are true to size to running a bit big.  Before Lymphedema I was a size 10, now I size up to 11's, but with these I think I would stick with a 10 wide.  I purchased them during the stay

Shop My Look Here! I had to add the question mark, because even before lymphedema at my thinnest I’m sad to say I never felt comfortable in shorts as a young adult. What that translated into is, “I didn’t feel comfortable in my skin” therefore I didn’t wear shorts.  I love flowy maxi dresses for summer, but now that we’ve become campers, the dress thing isn’t very practical. Even at home I find myself sweating up a storm, but a lot of times it's because of hot flashes. Picture you’re walking in a sweat suit in like 100° weather . . . and then walk into a sauna while Satan is breathing his hot breath on you-that’s a hot flash.  Sooo back to shorts.  Jean shorts are so cute, but if I’m going to wear shorts I need them to be lightweight, comfortable and flattering. Those words all describe the new short I found. Wild Fable’s High Rise Ruffle Shorts. They come in 3 colors and are $17!! I’ve learned at Target if you see something you could see yourself loving-grab 1 if not 2 of that it

Birkenstocks are probably my favorite shoe brand right now. From their Gizeh:  https://shopstyle.it/l/blpM8   to their Essentials Gizeh:  https://shopstyle.it/l/blpM3  and for Mothers Day my kids bought me the Boston Slip On Clog:  https://shopstyle.it/l/blpMN  which I love-and already have my eyes on another color. So to stray away from Birkenstock is a stretch for me, but I needed some water shoes ASAP to fit Bertha. Thats when I found Target’s Shade and Store Sandal:  https://shopstyle.it/l/blpMT  They come in Regular and Wide sizes 🙌🏻 I ordered my size in wide width and crossed my fingers they would fit. They fit and since they are foam I don’t need to break them in. They have been amazing on my family vacation. The sandals are light weight, fit Bertha and are a great deal to boot! My bro-in-law has the real Birkenstocks and honestly I can’t tell a difference from sight. So if you’re looking for a great pair of summer/water shoes you can’t beat this pair for under $15!! I purchas

I don't mean this to be one of those food blog post where it starts out "...it was an usually warm fall day when I was born . . . "  Most of the time I'll scroll until I get to the recipe.  So here is your permission to scroll if you don't want the background story of my current health issues. Recently my body has been what I call rejecting itself.  It feels like I'll have a season, when the saying "when it rains, it pours" describes my life and how my body functions.  It is difficult for me to slow down and listen to my body sometimes, but I feel like I've gotten better at listening to it's cues of when I need to stop and rest.  Well lately my body is screaming at me and my stubborn, strong willed self has had a tough time listening.  I told my husband my spirit character is John Lock from LOST (see below meme.) I started to have back issues after my daughter was born about 7 years ago.  It would spasm so much if I moved an inch the pain wou